Title: Assessing The Dead
Author: Caz251
Summary: Owen meets with Grandmamma to ask her permission to marry Wednesday.
Characters: Owen, Grandmamma, mentions of Addams family and Team
Spoilers: Spoilers for Torchwood and The Addams Family.
Warnings: Gwenbashing, Slash, and General weirdness
Disclaimer: I don't own either the Addams Family or Torchwood, no matter how hard I wish it were so.

Grandmamma Addams smiled her most gruesome smile in an attempt to ward off her Wednesday's suitor. He was a strong corpse but she wanted to see how he stood up to some of her worst. After all he had to be able to hold his own against the rest of the family as well as being able to deal with Wednesday.

He gave her a smile of his own that was crossed with both a sneer and a smirk, showing that he knew exactly what she was attempting to do and that he wasn't intimidated by her methods. She had to give the young man credit, he had hidden away from nothing, save Death, that he had seen since he had made their acquaintance.

"So, you wish for my blessings on a marriage with my Wednesday as bride." She stated, hoping to catch him off guard by turning his own statements back on him.

"Yes, Ma'am." Owen replied, looking straight at her, not losing eye contact for even a second something that she admired greatly, she smirked, maybe he was worthy.

"You think you will be able to provide for her, or are you intending to try and live off the family?" She queried.

Owen seemed to gather himself for a moment before speaking, "I don't have much some savings from my work as both a doctor and from my work at Torchwood and an inheritance from my grandmother. I also haven't spent much of my salary in the last few months as being dead has meant that I don't really need much. I own my own flat in a good area that will get a good price on the market if Wednesday doesn't want to live there."

Grandmamma hummed, not giving anything away, she was really just toying with him, she knew everything about him already, but she wasn't going to make this easy for him. She thought back to the conversation that the family had had the evening before when Wednesday had informed her that the corpse wished an audience with her.

They had gathered in the dining room once more to discuss a prospective spouse of an Addams, something that seemed to be happening more and more often lately. Grandmamma at the head of the table as normal, she looked around at her family looking for someone to start to give their opinion of the suitor. Eventually she decided to start the debate herself, "He is strong willed, almost as strong willed as our child, don't you think Morticia?"

"Qui." She commented, shushing her husband as he muttered about her talking French. "He definitely has will. He is also rather resilient, in mind as well as decaying body."

"He isn't decaying, not anymore at least." Fester piped up, "I fixed that problem, he is now partially preserved. I would have gone further with the process, but Death cautioned me not to for some reason."

Thing knocked on the table to get their attention before telling them that Death had stated a link between Owen and Wednesday would bind them together in the same state. The more dominant state a sign of the dominant partner.

As things words reached the family a riot of noise seemed to fill the room as everyone clamoured to speak at once. The main questions being would Wednesday become a corpse, would Owen come back to life, who was more dominant, it was surely Wednesday, but was it really. Eventually Thing called for order by wrapping hard on the table, gaining the rooms attention once more. "Death's Acolyte is stronger than his servant." He signed to the family who let out a sigh of relief; they wouldn't wish a half-life on anyone, not even their enemies, let alone one of their children.

"Will he be able to support Wednesday in the way she is used to?" Gomez asked, worried about his daughters future stability.

"Emotionally, he's about as stunted as some of us." Rhys spoke up, speaking from his knowledge and experience of the other man, "But he is certainly trying. He has made up for any wrong against me and he hasn't committed any against the family. He has even been taking lessons from me on how to cook Wednesday's favourite foods." He looked around the room, "Emotionally I'd say that he'd manage he'd be strong for her when she needed it, but would allow her to be strong for him and take care of him like she needs to."

Ianto nodded, "I agree. As for financially, he has a decent flat, it will make a bit and I know he has savings as well as his Torchwood salary, something that he hasn't touched much since he died, he doesn't really spend much now that he is dead."

"There is a darkness in him that could almost rival ours." Pugsley stated, "And not just because of his death, although that made it stronger. Janet and Blossom say that he is dark on a fundamental level, dark at the core. He is just what Wednesday needs."

"He seems to understand the family in ways that not many have done in recent history." Rhiannon stated, looking around to find anyone who disagreed with her point. "He really just takes it all in stride, everything that we have thrown at him so far he has accepted it and got on with things anyway."

Ianto nodded, "He's rather like that at work as well, he may have a bit of trouble accepting something at first, but then he takes it on board assimilates the knowledge and gets on with his job."

Johnny piped up, "More importantly than that he knows when to give the children room to grow and when to protect them. Look at Micah for example, he had no problem with her weapons display, in fact I would go as far as to say that he was intrigued and perhaps impressed by it. Then as soon as Death appeared all his focus was on protecting our child, she may not have needed protecting but from what prior experience he had of Death in his view she did, and he didn't hesitate at all before blocking her from view."

"Does he have what it takes thought o be the father of the next generation of Addams?" Andy asked, looking at the others, hoping that they would be able to tell him or not.

"He can be a huge kid himself, he will strop with the best of them, but I think he could do it." Ianto stated, "He is trying really hard with the family to make things work for Wednesday, I can see him working even harder for his children's happiness."

Rhys nodded, agreeing instantly. "From all I knew of him and now know of him, I'd say definitely. He really has put his all into this, I can't see a child being any different. He may not understand all our practices when it comes to our children, but I am sure that he would learn rather quickly if he had the chance."

The family had discussed the corpse for a number of hours, most points in his favour, the main one being that Wednesday actually wanted him, something that they had never expected. She was going to go through with a marriage for the family, but she hadn't wanted to marry. Now though she was almost rushing the corpse to the altar, determined to make him hers.

In the end the family had come to a decision that they all agreed with, even knowing that if she changed her mind the decision was still Grandmamma's to make. She wasn't going to change her mind though not unless something new came to light, but she was certainly not going to make it easy for the corpse. She intended to test him, to make sure he was worthy, of her granddaughter and of her family.

Her family wouldn't be allowed to watch the proceedings, she wanted the only records to be in her and the corpses brains, it would make her threats much more affective if only the corpse knew what he was hiding from. She wouldn't threaten him much, that really wasn't her place, that was Wednesday's job in the future, no she would just scare him a bit as she questioned his motives.

"So you would be willing to move?" Grandmamma stated plainly to the man sat in front of her, focusing fully on the corpse. "Even if Wednesday wished to live at home in the States?"

"Yes. I would move to America if that is what Wednesday wants. If she wants to live here that is what we will do and there will be space for your family to stay if they wish to visit. I don't care where we live as long as we live together." Owen replied, looking a hundred percent sure of what he was saying.

"Hmmm," Grandmamma exhaled, making it seem like she was thinking things through, when really all her thinking had been done on the situation. Unless the corpse brought something new to light that would make his suitability as an Addams spouse questionable she was prepared to allow the marriage to go ahead. "So, you would be willing to allow Wednesday to still see the family, and practice her heritage?"

"Of course," Owen replied, sounding affronted that he would be questioned in such a way, as if he would try to restrict his future bride from conversing with her family, or would stop her from being herself, it was unthinkable. "Wednesday is an Addams, and from what I know of your family, an Addams is an Addams first and foremost. That is who Wednesday is, trying to stop her from being herself is something that I would never do, I want her for who she is, why would I try to change that?"

"I approve." Grandmamma replied, "You have obviously thought this through, does that have something to do with your own darkness perhaps, that you have shunned and hidden for years?"

"I suppose," Owen conceded, "I know what it is like to hide part of yourself, to try and be someone you are not, and it is not something that I would wish on someone I hated, let alone someone that I loved, there is no way that I would make Wednesday try and change herself without her wish or permission. Change itself is fine, we are both bound to change a bit as we progress in our relationship, mainly just through living together and coming to terms with living in such an enclosed space as a marriage. That change is normal, but when change is forced it just leads to resentment, forced change is not something I want to be part of."

"I believe you." Grandmamma commented, before looking thoughtful once more, "Talking of change, before your death you were a notorious womaniser who had a different partner every night that you went out, is this something that you would be trying to continue after your marriage."

Owen looked at her, wondering what exactly she was trying to say, yes he had hardly been a monk, but he wasn't in a relationship at the time there was nothing wrong with having fun if he was single, but if he was married to Wednesday he wouldn't be single and he would certainly not be going elsewhere, the woman would castrate him first before allowing him to stray. He explained this to grandmamma with a straight face, knowing that it was just a statement of fact. That the old woman just grinned at him, told him that it was something that would definitely happen if he even attempted to stray, not that he would.

"Very well." Grandmamma stated. "I give you my permission to become engaged to my granddaughter Dr Harper. However I must warn you that any attempt to harm her or this family will be dealt with swiftly in most cases, in others we may decide to draw it out for a while, as you have probably seen with Aluka's toy. I hope that you are ready and prepared to become an Addams Doctor Harper, and realise that once an Addams you are always an Addams, no matter where you go or what you do. We are always there and always watching, after all family is the most important thing there is."

Owen thanked her before leaving the room, most likely to find Wednesday and inform him that they had been granted permission to wed, and hopefully to propose to her properly. Grandmamma sat back in her chair and let a small smile cross her face, it was fleeting of course, her Wednesday was finally going to know the torture that was marriage and if thing was right she may even get to experience the pain of childbirth. Another generation of Addams, one even more entrenched in Torchwood than the last, it seemed that with each new generation the family became more entwined with the Institute. She wondered really how long it would be before the family were staffing the Institute fully themselves, after all they were certainly capable of it.